Even before soldiers were screaming, "Contact. Contact. Contact," Army Spc. Zachary Boyd of Fort Worth knew there was trouble outside Firebase Restrepo.

The tip was gunfire echoing across the Korengal Valley of eastern Afghanistan, near the border with Pakistan. That day in April, Taliban fighters ambushed a patrol of U.S. soldiers as they scrambled to get back "inside the wire."

Boyd, 20, who had just gone to bed, grabbed his helmet and M4 carbine but not his pants. He positioned himself with fellow Viper Company troops at a wall, scanning for targets. » read more

Ambulances are transporting more supersize patients than ever — several a day, including some as large as 800 pounds.

And as the number of morbidly obese Americans goes up, emergency crews are straining their backs and budgets to get them to hospitals.

Especially during a life-threatening emergency, the process requires not only brute strength, but creativity on the fly. » read more

Sometimes it takes an immigrant to remind us how fortunate we are to be Americans.

For Ethel Hoistad, that immigrant is Patricia Adelekun.

Adelekun came to the United States in 1996 from Nigeria and became a citizen in 2003. The women met at Community Bible Study in Gastonia, where Hoistad expected to learn about the Bible. » read more

Mark Sanford’s quest to hold on to the governorship picked up more steam Friday when a pair of allies offered their support for him to remain in office.

State Sen. Tom Davis, R-Beaufort, released a statement saying he had, on several occasions, asked Sanford to resign after Sanford acknowledged having an extramarital affair with a woman from Argentina. But Davis said the governor and his wife, Jenny Sanford, told him they could work on their marriage while he held on to his position.

“I am not going to second-guess them on that personal matter,” said Davis, whose continued support is seen as particularly important because he is Sanford’s former chief of staff and he and the governor have been friends for 30 years. » read more

WIMBLEDON, England — Who says American tennis is in decline?

Underdog Andy Roddick stunned Andy Murray and all of Great Britain Friday afternoon, advancing to the Wimbledon final with a 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (9-7), 7-6 (7-5) semifinal victory that left the Centre Court audience speechless. Roddick, a two-time Wimbledon finalist, hasn't won a Grand Slam title since the 2003 U.S. Open and was 2-6 against Murray before Friday.

His final opponent is five-time champion Roger Federer, who beat Tommy Haas in straight sets in the other semifinal. Federer will attempt to break Pete Sampras' record of 14 Grand Slam titles and reclaim his No. 1 ranking from Rafael Nadal. » read more